Saudi Arabia

Saudi Press Agency, via Associated Press

News about Saudi Arabia, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Jul. 29, 2015

Thomas L Friedman Op-Ed column describes how events of 1979 in Middle East, like Iran's Islamic Revolution and takeover of Mecca by Islamic extremists, continue to shape current events in region; maintains that Iran nuclear deal has potential to end that lasting influence, or to exacerbate it; suggests that both Iran and Saudi Arabia desperately need to discard 1979 ideologies or risk their own demise. MORE

Jul. 28, 2015

Saudi Arabia agrees to halt its military operations against Houthi rebels in Yemen for five days to allow delivery of humanitarian aid, but violence does not let up; aid agency Oxfam says nearly half country is in need of food and nearly six million are facing starvation. MORE

Jul. 26, 2015

Saudi Arabia says it will cease military offensive against Houthis in Yemen for five days in order to allow for distribution of humanitarian aid supplies to civilians. MORE

Jul. 19, 2015

Saudi Arabian security forces arrest 400 people suspected of involvement with terrorist attacks carried out by Islamic State in nationwide dragnet; high number of suspects highlights mounting fears over group's activities within kingdom. MORE

Jul. 17, 2015

Newly released WikiLeaks documents show Saudi Arabia's global attempts in recent years to undermine its main enemy, Shiite Iran; documents portray comprehensive competition with deep roots in religious ideologies that drive two countries; array of oil-funded operation illustrates Saudi's alarm at nuclear program deal reached by world powers with Iran. MORE

Jul. 16, 2015

United Nations Security Council is expected to unanimously endorse nuclear agreement with Iran, move that will grant body increased momentum in Middle Eastern affairs; questions remain over deal's capacity to stabilize region; supporters say it will reduce underlying tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, while critics argue that it will only make them worse. MORE

Jul. 15, 2015

Southern allied fighters in Yemen seize control of airport in Aden, dealing Houthi rebels their most significant defeat yet in the three months since they stormed city; Houthis still retain control of three important neighborhoods in Aden, as well as other captured territory throughout Yemen, despite four-month bombing campaign led by Saudi Arabia. MORE

Jul. 14, 2015

Houthi forces fire on oil refinery in Aden, Yemen, hitting storage tanks and starting large fire; United Nations-brokered cease-fire, meant to allow delivery of aid, was foiled by Saudi Arabia, which did not recognize truce and continued airstrikes against Houthis. MORE

Jul. 10, 2015

Prince Saud al-Faisal, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister for four decades who used quiet diplomacy to maintain country’s regional influence and alliance with United States, dies at age 75. MORE

Jul. 10, 2015

United Nations says fighting between Saudi-led military forces battling to restore Yemen’s exiled government and Houthi insurgents will pause so humanitarian aid can be delivered. MORE

Jul. 7, 2015

Saudi-led coalition airstrikes targeting Houthi insurgents kill about 80 people at public markets in Yemen in one day alone; as warring parties debate terms of cease-fire on humanitarian grounds, civilians continue to die, with about a hundred people killed in three days and at least 3,000 in past three months of fighting. MORE

Jul. 7, 2015

Editorial scores international community for failing to adequately address humanitarian crisis in Yemen, where 80 percent of country's 25 million citizens are imperiled and 1,500 civilians have been killed since March; notes Saudi-led coalition campaign against rebel Houthis has impeded delivery of humanitarian aid; calls for immediate negotiations aiming for permanent political solution that ensures legitimate role in new government for Houthis. MORE

Jul. 3, 2015

Saudi Arabia will reportedly stop airstrikes in Yemen long enough for humanitarian aid to be delivered. MORE

Jul. 1, 2015

Saudi-led military coalition is facing rising pressure as it tries to stop Houthi rebels in Yemen; United Nations is poised to declare country in severe humanitarian crisis and human rights group say situation may involve of war crimes; diplomats say military blockage on commercial ships is choking supply of food and fuel into poorest nation in Arab world. MORE

Jun. 25, 2015

Analysts in Yemen say that Saudi Arabia does not seem to have clear strategy for ending war in the country, particularly in light of failure of talks in Geneva to secure even short-term cease-fire; Saudi campaign against rebel Houthis has failed to halt their advance, and some analysts worry that Saudi-led conflict has merely internationalized what would have been domestic conflict. MORE

Jun. 21, 2015

Trove of private documents released by WikiLeaks elucidate ways in which Saudi Arabia has used its wealth and religious influence to shape regional events; while documents are not particularly damning, they shed light on diplomacy of wealthy and deeply private country. MORE

Jun. 15, 2015

Houthi rebel fighters take Hazm, capital city of Yemen's Jawf Province, consolidating their control over country despite Saudi-led bombing campaign. MORE

Jun. 13, 2015

Irina Bokova, director general of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, condemns destruction of 2,500-year-old cultural heritage site in Sana, Yemen, which was rocked by explosion from unspecified source, as well as deaths caused; witnesses and news reports say explosion was caused by bomb or missile from Saudi plane, which Saudi military denies. MORE

Jun. 12, 2015

Saudi Arabian Foreign Ministry rejects criticism for upholding conviction and sentence of 10-year prison term and 1,000 lashes for Raif Badawi, blogger who has become symbol of country's oppressive free speech and inhumane justice system. MORE

Jun. 11, 2015

Editorial condemns effective death sentence handed down to blogger Raif Badawi in Saudi Arabia; observes Badawi will receive 1,000 lashes for what amounts to free expression; calls for clemency from King Salman bin Abdulaziz. MORE

Jun. 8, 2015

Saudi Arabia's Supreme Court upholds verdict against Raif Badawi, liberal blogger found guilty of insulting Islam; Badawi has been sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes. MORE

Jun. 8, 2015

Saudi-led airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Sana, Yemen, kill at least 22 people at military headquarters there, most of them soldiers. MORE

Jun. 7, 2015

Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman has quickly risen to prominence, gaining more power than any Saudi prince has ever held and upending established systems for distributing important positions in process; prince has assumed leading role in conflicts in Yemen and elsewhere in region, raising concern among some. MORE

Jun. 7, 2015

Saudi Arabia shoots down Scud ballistic missile fired by Houthi rebels in Yemen; incident marks first time Yemeni factions have used that weapon, signaling escalation in conflict. MORE

Jun. 5, 2015

Airstrikes in Yemen led by Saudi Arabian military coalition against Houthi rebels kill at least 50 people in northern province Saada; Yemeni officials and medical personnel say most of casualties were civilians. MORE

Jun. 5, 2015

Former Saudi government adviser Anwar Eshki and former Israeli United Nations ambassador Dore Gold discuss Iran's actions across Middle East at Washington office of the Council on Foreign Relations. MORE

Jun. 1, 2015

Diriyah Journal; Saudi Arabia royal family is building tourist attraction in Diriyah to celebrate its history and alliance with 18th-century fundamentalist preacher Sheikh Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab, which helped create modern Saudi state; project, which will feature parks, restaurants and museums, is intended to help rehabilitate reputation of Abdul-Wahhab, whose rigid version of Islam has been criticized of late for promoting intolerance. MORE

Jun. 1, 2015

At least four American citizens are believed to have been detained by Houthis in Sana, Yemen, raising concerns over their safety as Saudi strikes bombard city now controlled by the Shiite rebel group; State Dept is working to secure the detainees' release, effort complicated by fact that Obama administration has openly supported Saudi's military campaign against Houthi rebels. MORE

Jun. 1, 2015

Saudi Arabia is increasing its production of oil to rate that is nearly equal to output in the 1980s, and other countries within Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries are doing the same; trend is at odds with what has been Saudi strategy in adjusting its output to global price of crude oil, and points to way broader market is evolving, as well as Saudi role in it. MORE

May. 30, 2015

May. 29, 2015

Antiaircraft fire launched by Houthi rebels against Saudi airstrikes in Yemen has reportedly killed or maimed many civilians. MORE

May. 28, 2015

Airstrikes by Saudi-led coalition against Houthi rebels in Yemen result in one-day death toll of 80 people; World Health Organization reports that nearly 2,000 Yemenis have died in conflict since March, and that 8.6 million people out of population of 24 million are in urgent need of medical help for war-related injuries and common medical issues. MORE

May. 24, 2015

Saudi Interior Ministry identifies suicide bomber who killed 21 people at Shiite mosque in town near Qatif as Salih bin Abdulrahman Salih al-Ghishaami, Saudi citizen who acted at behest of Islamic State. MORE

May. 24, 2015

Op-Ed article by David Motadel suggests proxy struggles in Middle East between Shiite and Sunni Muslim populations funded by Iran and Saudi Arabia, respectively, are return to classic geopolitics in region; contends that addressing conflict in Middle East requires that international community does its utmost to prevent escalation of conflicts between two countries, and address underlying needs of their client states. MORE

May. 23, 2015

Islamic State claims responsibility for suicide bombing of Shiite mosque in eastern Saudi Arabia that is said to have killed at least 21 people and injured 120 others; attack points to possibility that Saudi air campaign against Houthis in Yemen may be escalating sectarian tensions at home. MORE

May. 23, 2015

Saudi Arabian youth have turned to social media as way to circumvent many of the restraints imposed upon them by country's strict social codes and its rigid version of Islam, using apps to earn money, court partners, meet friends and express themselves; country has widely available and reliable Internet, young population and relatively high amount of disposable income, which makes it ideal for social media boom. MORE

May. 22, 2015

Shellfire in Yemen near border with Saudi Arabia kills five Ethiopian migrants seeking diplomatic shelter, casualties of ongoing conflict between Saudi-led coalition and Houthi rebels in Yemen; separately, 19 people were killed in another Saudi airstrike in Yemen. MORE

May. 19, 2015

Saudi Arabian government advertises eight job openings for executioners to perform beheadings and hand amputations in public squares; rate of executions in country, especially for non-violent drug-related crimes, has increased sharply since ascendance of King Salman to throne. MORE

May. 19, 2015

Saudi Arabia's crude oil exports rose to 7.898 million barrels per day in March, from 7.350 million barrels per day in February, highest level since 2005. MORE

May. 16, 2015

Editorial criticizes Saudi Arabia and other Arab states for threatening to build up their own nuclear capabilities in response to nuclear deal with Iran; holds that pact regulating Iran's capabilities is best means of preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapon and urges Arab states to recognize that; warns increase of nuclear power across region will only inflame tensions and make Middle East less safe. MORE

May. 14, 2015

Pres Obama is facing troublesome consequence of his argument that nuclear-armed Iran could set off race for comparable weapons across Middle East; by allowing nuclear research and development program to remain in place in Iran, he is leaving United States open to argument that Saudi Arabia and other Sunni Arab states must be granted the same technological and research capabilities. MORE

May. 13, 2015

Tentative cease-fire takes effect in parts of Yemen, in first negotiated halt to hostilities since Saudi Arabia started a bombing campaign against Houthi rebels in late March. MORE

May. 12, 2015

News Analysis; decision by Saudi Arabia's King Salman to not attend summit meeting called by Pres Obama signals shift in relations between once close allies and underscores nations' increasingly differing goals in Middle East; tensions over Iran nuclear deal, rise of Islamic State, fallout from Arab Spring and United States' lessening dependence on Saudi oil have contributed to fracturing of relationship. MORE

May. 12, 2015

King Salman of Saudi Arabia and leaders of other Gulf Cooperation Council countries are becoming more public in their expressions of mistrust and displeasure with Obama administration's Middle East policies, particularly deal on Iran's nuclear program; disentangling themselves from decades of military cooperation with United States and Britain will be slow process as they have become dependent on US for security. MORE

May. 11, 2015

King Salman of Saudi Arabia pulls out of summit meeting with Pres Obama at Camp David, signalling his displeasure at administration's relations with regional adversary Iran; meeting will give Washington chance to more closely observe defense minister Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who will come in King's stead, along with interior minister Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef. MORE

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